it's up to you to be you.

I was helping one of my girlfriends do her grocery shopping the other night, as she was preparing to take part in my March, 10 day challenge. Since there is 2,000 miles of beautiful land between us, I walked up and down the aisles of Kroger via mobile. I thought it was quite funny, because I had her read ingredients to me, and as soon as I heard something unclean I’d give her a big fat NO. Plus, I was getting a kick out of feeling like I was educating her with valuable information. For her, this was probably less entertaining and more devastating, but I kept trying to remind her of how harmful some of the ingredients are to her precious body. Plus, as I later told her…it’s not really a “restrictive diet,” you can still enjoy everything you love, just with better ingredients—no chemicals, genetically modified substances, or highly processed yuckies.

By the end, she made a not so uncommon remark, “This clean food is expensive!” I said, “Yes, well think of all the health bills you won’t have to pay if you eat this way.” Basically, you get what you pay for. Buy cheap, and expect cheap quality food that can be quite detrimental to your body, as you’re basically just consuming chemicals. Even items labeled “healthy,” are not necessarily healthy at all. ALWAYS read the ingredients!

Unfortunately, it seems the most natural products we have in our grocery stores, cost more; and the most chemical-filled and highly processed goods come dirt cheap. I derno…to me, that’s a bit backwards, is it not? Still, there’s always a way to shop smart. Either way, I’d much rather spend a little more on delicious clean foods, than spend heaps more on unpleasant and uncomfortable visits to the doctor’s office, and worrying about medical bills—as much as I can control it anyway. The way I think of it, I can spend the hundreds and thousands of dollars I’d spend trying to save my health on a pretty pair of shoes, or a weekend spa getaway. Besides, if you go to your local market or local farmer’s market, instead of the major grocery stores, you can probably save a lot on fresh produce. Support your farmers!!